Resilient wheel.



F. A. TURNER.

RESILIENT WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB-13.1917.

Patented Apr. 8, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

F. A. TURNER.

REslLlENT WHEEL.

APPLICATION FILED FEB- 131 I9I7.

EmmiY Aprf, 1917.' Il, 2 wigs-SHEET 2. i

FRANK A. TURNER, F JBOSTON, MSSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-HALF TO JOSEPH Fil. JACKSON, OF BOSTGN, MASSACHUSETTS, AND ONE-FOURTH T0 ARTHUR 1E. KIL- Hdhl, 0F BEVERLY, MMSACHUSETTS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

RESILIJENT WHEEL.

Patented dpr. 3, lml'l'.

Application led February lit, 1917. Serial No. Mdti.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that l, FRANK A, TURNER, a citizen of the United States, residing'at Boston, in the county of Sudolk and State t of Massachusetts, have invented new andA useful llmprovements in Resilient Wheels, of which the following is a specification.

rlhis invention relates to a resilient wheel which includes a rigid wheel body, a tireof o considerably larger diameter'than the diameter ont the Wheel body, so'that the tire and the rim member ol' the wheel body are separated by an annular space, and resilient means interposed between the wheel body t and the floating tire, permitting the Wheel body to assume/an eccentric position relative to the tire, under the influence of a load thereon, and when depressed by jolts' and jars, said resilient means cushioning the ll wheel body and its load.

'lhe object of the present invention is to enable the resilient cushioning meansto also serve as a means for transmitting torque` trom the wheel body to the tire, when the t wheel body is positively driven, and is, for example, thefbody of a driving-wheel of an automobile, the cushioning eect` ofthe resilient means being unadected by its lunction as a torque-transmitting means. f o -'l`o the above and other related ends, the invention consists in the improvements which l will now proceed to describe and claim.

@i the accompanying drawingsforming a part. oi this specication,

Figure 1 is aside elevationiolf a resilient wheel embodyingv the invention, the rela-f tively movable parts of the wheel being in' the positions they occupy when the wheel.

body is not influenced by a load.'` v

D Fig. 2 is a section on lineA 2'-2 of Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a section on line 3`3 of Fig. 2, omitting the wheel, body and tire tread and showing the rim member hereinafter described depressed by a load thereon to a posit tion eccentric with the floating tire, the Wheel" being at rest. U

Fig. 4 is asview slnnlar to Fig. 3, showing the member 13 beinggfor example, an ordif nary solid rubber tire. i

The floating tire member 12 is provided with a series of uniformly spaced inwardly projecting protuberances 14, which ll call outer bearings, since they bear upon the outer side of the endless floating spring f member hereinafter described.

l5 represents an annular rim member, forming, when in use, a rigid pailt of a wheel body, and here shown as a metal ring, secured in any'suitable way to a rigid( wheel rim, which may include a telly 16.

l desire it to be understood that /my pres- 5 ent invention does not relate in any way to the sti'ucture of the portion of the wheel body surrounded by the member 15.

rllhe rim member 12 is provided with a series of spaced apart outwardly projecting proturbances17, which l call inner bearings, because thev bear on the inner side of the aboven1entioned annular lioatingl spring member.

18 represents an annular Heating spring member of resilient and practically inextensible material, such as a strip of tempered steel, or a laminated strip, the ends of which are suitably' connected to form an annulus.

ln assembling the tiremember 12 and rim member 15, the bearings 14 of the tire member are caused. to alternate with the bearings 17 of the rim member and the annular sprin ,member 18 is seated movably on theends o "all the bearings. as indicated by Fig. 1, and

is free to slide thereon. The spring member the conditions thatoprevail when the wheel thus arranged constitutes a resilient support l for the whe'el body and its load, and is adapted to normally hold the rim member l5 substantially concentric with the tire member 12, as shown-by Fig. 1, when the wheel body is not infiuenced by a load.

When the wheel body is depressed by a load, the portions of the annular `spring member 18 which bridge the spaces between adjacent outer bearings 14, yield to the weight of the rim member and its load, exerted through the inner bearings 17, and are f'lexed outwardly between adjacent outer bearings 14, the corresponding innerbearings 17 being at .the same time depressed into the spaces between the outer bearings at the lower portion of the wheel.

This change in the relative positions of the parts causes in effect an interlocking engagement between the rim member andthe floating tire, the bridging lower 4portions of the'floating spring member being crowded between the adjacent outer vbearings at opposite ends of the' space bridged by said portions, I/and becoming torque-transmitting portions of the spring member.

When the wheel is at rest the springflexing yinner bearings 17 are substantially midway between the adjacent spring-supporting outer` bearings 14, as shown by Fig. 3, this being dueto the fact that when the rim members and spring member are assembled, the'rsprin member 'is under tension and exerts 'equa pressure on'both the outer and inner bearings. When thespring mem- ,ber is vunder torque-transmitting fiexure, as

shown by Fig. 4,- the resistance of the poror materially decreased, the strain or tention 18" to movement of'an inner bearing thereon, rapidly increases until saidl movement is arrested. If, lwhen the spring member and bearings arein the relative positions shown by Fig.4, the load is reroved sion set up in the portion 148h of the spring member acts `to restore the inner bearings 17l -to a central position relatively to the outer bearings l14. By assembling the parts with the spring Amember under tension,i

which I consider preferable, I obviate any lost motion of the wheel body such as might be necessary to tension the spring member if the latter were not originally tensioned as described.

` When the wheelbody is rotated, say, in the direction/indicated by the arrow w, in Fig. 4, the spring-Helling innerbear'ings'l'? at the lower side of the wheel body move toward adjacent outer bearings 14 until they are arrested by the flexed portions of the floating Fig. 4. e

. Owing to the inextensibility of the floating spring member, the independent movement of the rimmember and its bearings 17 is arrested, while the flexed portions of spring 'member, as indicated by the spring member are in a condition of nonsymmetrical fiexure, 'and before the inner bearings 17 can approach the outer bearings ,14 sufiiciently to cause interference between said. bearings and reduce the cushioning effect. In other words, each fiexed portion of the annular spring member, in thel condition shown by Fig.^4, has a longer side 18 and a shorter side 18", the .latter being caused by the inextensibility of the sprin member to prevent. the inner bearing 1 75 from closely lapproaching the outer bearing 14,4so that each of the sides 18 and 18b has a suitable degree of resilience. At the same time, the abrupt fiexure of the spring memengage the adjacent outer bearing 14 with sufficient positiveness.

The floating tire vis provided with annular plates or flanges 20, secured to it by fastening devices 21 and projecting inwardly and overlapping'the edges of the rim member 15, said flanges being in sliding contact with the edges of the rim member, and their width being such that, under the described conditions, they cover the space between the 9( rim member 15 and the outer member 12 and exclude dust and dirt from said space. The chief function of the flanges 20 is to maintain the oating tire 12 and spring member 18 against edgewise displacement relatively 9i to the rim memberh 15 and the wheel body. The flanges 20 are preferably provided with annular grooves 22` in their inner sides, conning annular packngs .23 of rubber or `other suitable material, said packings being 1( preferably circular or elliptical inv cross section, and adapted to slide in contact with the sidesl of the felly, or other portion of the wheel body, and exclude water and dirt from the spring-containing space.

As shown by Fig. 1, the bearings 1,4 and 17 may be so proportioned that when the wheel body is not under the influence of ay load and the rim member 15 andthe floatin tire member 12 arev concentric with eac 1i other, the spring member 18 is flexed slightly inward by the outer bearings, and slightly outward by the inner bearings, this fiexure being` caused, for example, by making the inner bearings somewhat higher or deeper 1 than the outer bearings. In other words, the outer ends of the inner bearing members 17 are normally farther from the center 'of the wheel than the inner ends of the outer bearings 14. The waves or undulations nor- 1 mally formed` in the annular s ring member by the outer (and inner bearlngs, as last described, constitute incipientd torque-transmitting portions, which are enlarged or amplified at the lower portion of the wheel- 1 transmitting engagement above described, as will be readily seen. l

'lhe inextensibility of the annular spring member prevents eXtreme exure of its torque-transmitting portions and contact of the same With the tire member 12, so that the clearance or space between said portions and the tire member may be reduced to a minimum.

'lhe outer and vinner bearings, or the bearings of either series may be formed by antifriction rollers in rolling contact with the annular spring member, as shown by lF'ig..5.

rllhe rim member 15, the. floating tire member 12, having theflanges. 20, and the annular spring member 18, interposed between said members, constitute ,an attachment adapted to be applied ase. unit to the felly or rim portion of a wheel body, which may be either of a variety of forms or styles, the tire member constituting a tire base adapted to engage an elastic, or otherf'suit-l able member, constituting theitread portion of the floating tire.

As shown by Fig. 2, the flanges 20 project outwardly from the outer surface of the f tire member 12, to provide means for engaging the base of the tread member .13.

The rim member 15 may be secured to the rim or felly portion of the wheel body in any suitable way. For example, sald yrim membermay be pressure-applied like mitting portions of the annular spring member do not acquire the pronounced non` symmetrical lfleXure shown by lFig. 4f, but remain in substantially or approximately the form shown by Fig. 3.

I claim: i i

, 1. ln a resilient wheel, in combination, a Hoating annular tire member of rigid material, having a series of spaced outer bearings, a rigid annular rim member, having a series of spaced inner bearings, al'ternatV n ing with`said outer bearings, and an inextensible annular 4floating spring member interposed between said members in slidingcontact with said bearmgs, said spring member normally maintaining the rim member substantially concentric with the tire member, and the bearings of one member substantially central. relatively to those of the other member, and being locally flexible by the action of a load on the rim member to form resilient torque-transmitting portions which yie1d" ingly ysupport the. rim member and its load under all conditions of torque-transmission.

, 2. In a resilient wheel, in combination, a

floating annular tire member of rigid material, having a series of spaced outer bearings, a rigid annular rim member, having a series-of spaced inner bearings, alternating with said., outerF bearings, and an inextensible annular floating spring member interposed between said members in sliding contact with said bearings, said spring member normally maintaining the rim member substantially concentric with the tire member, and the bearings of one member substantially central relatively to those of the other member., and being locally flexible by the action of a load on the rim member to form resilient inextensible torque-transmitting portions which yieldingly support the rim member and its load under all conditions of torque-transmission, the said bearings being formed to normally maintain alternating outwardly and inwardly' .projecting waves in the spring member forming incipient torque-transmitting portions.

3. A resilient wheel comprising la floating annular tire member provided ywith a plurality of equally spaced outer bearings, a wheel body having its periphery provided inextensible with a plurality of equally spaced inner bearings alternating Iwith the outer bear ings, and an annular inextensible spring member interposed between the. tire member and the wheel body and in slidable` contact with the ends of all of said bearings, said spring member being free to creep circum-l ferentially of the wheel body, whereby a. limited relative radial movement of. the tire member and the wheel body is permitted when a load is applied, and portions of the spring member are flexed between contiguous inner and outer bearings, the spring member and wheel body being free to move to a position eccentric to thef tire member when saidjload is applied, the flexed por- 'tions of the inextensible spring member providing a driving` connection between the bearings carried by the wheel body and the tire member.

, 4. A resilient wheel comprising a floating annular tire member provided with a plu- 'rality of equally spaced outer bearings, a wheel body having its periphery provided with a plurality( of equally spaced inner bearings alternating with saiel outer bearings, the outer ends of the inner bearings being normally farther away from the Geni,"

ter of the wheel than the inner ends of the L" outer bearings, and an annular ,inextensible' ing'free to move to a position eccentric to the tire member when said load is applied, said inextensible spring member possessing sufficient body to cause 'the exed portions thereof to provide a resilient driving connection between the bearings carried bythe wheel body and the rim. l

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature.

FRANK A. TURNER. 

